… you might want to re-think the thing:
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Carvana also has problems and has paid fines in several states.
Carvana has had a few issues as well!
This online car buying thing is not turning out so well!
Is this like commodities trading where you buy the commodity and then sell it again while never getting to touch it? Then if you request delivery, it takes a long time!
Our cars are 80% backed by real cars hahaha!
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This can happen with a dealer also.
Short-sighted on Vroom’s part. Now that it’s is out, they will loose millions of dollars in business IMO.
That is true, but an aggrieved local customer can park in front of a sleazy dealership with appropriate signs displayed, in order to dissuade the public from doing business with that dealership.
Hopefully!
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Buying a car on a website, sight unseen, certainly seems like it would be convenient, but risk-management-wise doesn’t seem like a very good plan. Might be ok if buying from a local well-known brand dealership’s website.
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Two different families I know have sold houses to people who did not look the place over themselves at all. A video tour done by an agent was enough to have someone buy a house for more than $750,000. No contingencies at all.
If people will do that, they will buy cars online, they will pay $5,000 over list and they will live happily getting car care advice from an untrained wage earner at a chain oil change place. No need to wring your hands in dismay over this, it’s completely out of your control.
I can see us buying a home from the web tour . Usually we have an agent and the seller has one also. Plus things that might be wrong should be caught at the closing company. The vehicle thing is not geared to catch washed titles and loan payoffs as quick as some of these online vehicle sellers need it to be .
I think there are contingencies. For one, it’s impossible to get a loan without an appraisal. The appraiser will provide a detailed list of problems and tell the prospective buyer and mostly the bank whether the home is worth the agreed to price. If someone comes in with a 40% or more down payment that is not as big an issue. Still, when we moved into the house we are in now that was our situation. We had to argue with the bank to get them to accept the loan and also had to show them real comparable, not the stuff the appraiser showed them that was ten miles away.
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Just saw a news article, Carvana is laying off a lot of people . The stock has really dropped and they don’t seem to get resonable loan rates . Might be a good idea if someone says they are looking at a vehicle on Carvana to suggest not doing that.
Buying a an auto, home or any other significant purchase without the benefit of a local bank and professional appraisal is an act of foolishness.
They know the market, your ability to repay and have absolutely no desire to be holding a loan that you can’t repay so they’re actually on your side.
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True, but a loan in not a requirement to buy a house. Folks in my area buy houses w/cash for 100% of the price, not an infrequent thing. I had this very discussion w/real estate agent years ago. I claimed a house could be sold w/out any contingencies at all. He agreed w/you, there are always contingencies. I think this was resolved by we both agreeing to disagree.
@George_San_Jose1 and I live in the same area. A home sale with no contingencies other than the clear title is not uncommon. In fact, we sold house 21 years ago with no contingencies - no inspection, no mortgage, no appraisal, no other sale, no nothing. It happens a lot, often for houses in the multiple millions.
To keep with the Car talk theme, I’ve bought and sold countless motorcycles and scooters, and those are all cash, of course. It’s surprising how many folks didn’t even seem to care if it ran. One guy showed up to buy a scooter, came in an Uber ride, no helmet, no gloves, no prior riding experience, no motorcycle license. He paid me cash, full asking and set off over the Bay Bridge. A few hours later he called, very angry, because he got nearly home, stopped to fill the tank, and now it wouldn’t run. Long story short, he filled it with diesel. He tried to blame me that I didn’t tell him it used gasoline.
Don’t assume people are logical.
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Eh. An aggrieved remote buyer can make a viral video on her phone and dissuade the entire world from doing business with that dealership. 
That said, I wouldn’t do the remote buy thing for a car unless it was a very special circumstance, like getting a rare old classic from across the country or something. I like to test drive the actual car I’m buying before we get to the delivery stage.
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Yes, that is the modern high-tech approach.
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Now i need to call my daughter and tell her to forget my advice a few days ago of looking for a second car on Carvana.
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Me too. I think sellers like Vroom offer a two week period to decide whether you want to return it or not. That would give someone the time to get the post-purchase inspection done and return it if there are hidden problems. I’ll still go with the see-drive-inspect-buy progression.
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Yep. Once they transfer it to me, all sorts of things can happen. Tesla has been known to monkey with this procedure from time to time. There have been a few instances where they’ll deliver it, make you sign the inspection paper before test driving it, then claim whatever’s wrong with it is something you did.
While that’s something I’ll probably win eventually, it would cost me a lot of time, money and aggravation and the older I get, the less tolerant I am of such things. Life’s too short to have to spend significant chunks of it fighting shady businesses.